Ferdinand Magellan Portuguese explorer who led the first expedition that sailed around the Earth (1519-1522). Magellan also named the Pacific Ocean and discovered the Magellanic Islands including Tierra Del Fuego in 1520.

Chile lies between the Pacific Ocean and the giant Andes Mountains on the South American continent. Chile stretches over 4,300 km (2,700 mi) along the southwestern coast of South America. At the same time, its width never exceeds 240 km (150 mi), making the country more than eighteen times longer than its widest point. Chile is the longest and narrowest country on the planet.

Chile has one of the world’s most dangerous coastlines and the Chilean navy operates one of the world’s most active lighthouse services. Chile is among the top fishing countries in the world.

Chile is bordered on the east by the Andes Mountains and on the west by the Pacific Ocean. To the north the land becomes more arid, until one reaches the forbidding Atacama Desert, one of the most inhospitable regions on earth.

In the center of the country is a long river valley, a five hundred mile corridor occupied in the north by vineyards and great farms and in the south by primeval forests and lakes. Santiago, the capital, is located in this central valley.

To the south is the Chilean Patagonia a land of islands, glaciers, icebergs and mountains.

Cape Horn, the southernmost point in the Americas, where the Pacific and Atlantic oceans turbulently meet, is Chilean territory. Before the opening of the Panama Canal, ships sailed from the east coast to the west coast of North or South America via Cape Horn.

Chile also lays claim to the offshore territories of Easter Island, Juan Fernández, and half of the southern island of Tierra del Fuego (which it shares with Argentina). Chile’s Easter Island is in the Pacific, far away from the Chilean coast. The island’s strange ancient statues stand 30 feet (9 m) tall, but why they were built is a mystery.

Plants

The “Copihue“, the National Flower
Includes the “Legend of the origin of the Copihue” and other National Chilean Symbols.

Chilean plant life includes stands of araucaria (the monkey-puzzle tree), cypress and rare alerce trees (similar to the giant redwoods of California).